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Happy Birthday MLB Network

The MLB Network turns one today and much like my nephew who turned one in November, really only the people that created it understand it’s being celebrated.

New talent will make for an even greater 2010 on the network with Peter Gammons of ESPN fame joining the gang. Hopefully, the new talent the Cubs add this off-season will provide a positive boost as well. Marlon Byrd may be the biggest acquisition thus far for GM Hendry and the team on the North Side, however the off-season is long from being over.

Hendry is keeping within the budget the owners have asked to stick to and considering so far we’ve rid ourselves of an ineffective bullpen stat line eye sore in Gregg, a second rate dud at second base in Miles and an outfielder who couldn’t stand Cubs fans who resorted to giving out free baseballs to fans in right as souvenirs (unfortunately on fly balls he caught while there were still less than three outs and men on base) and upgraded our outfielder situation by moving Fukudome to right (where he’ll be more of an asset) and mixing in the talented and if nothing else, available, Byrd in centerfield…I’d say so far, so ‘pretty good’ by Hendry this off-season. Would I count on Byrd to put my chances of a thrilling October with a happy ending for a book deal all by himself? NO WAY and I’ll have more on Byrd later. (Regarding the book deal, see the post listed below this one).

There are still more moves to be made and deals to be done. By GM Hendry for sure and hopefully with an interested publishing company as well. Time will tell.

For today though, happy birthday to the MLB Network! Mark Newman, the enterprise editor of MLB.com wrote an article commemorating the network’s first anniversary. He asked for people to send him their thoughts regarding what it has been like having the network available 24/7 over the past year. I submitted and am quoted at the end of the piece! It reads:

Ryan Maloney, a Cubs fan in New York, said it changed his baseball world and he cannot wait to see what is next.

“Having MLB Network 24/7 has been an amazing resource, as it practically puts the viewer in the Commissioner’s Office with their timeliness in breaking news and updates surrounding the game,” Maloney said. “Having MLB Network on 24/7 has provided younger viewers with an opportunity to allow historic-game footage to serve as the face of the biggest names of baseball past.

“[It’s] a great way to allow fans of all ages to truly appreciate what makes the game of baseball the great game it has developed into today and the people that have contributed to our country’s favorite pastime along the way. The days of getting your baseball news from boutique sports news stations ended a year ago, the day MLB opened its specialty shop in the MLB Network.”

If you’d like to read the entire article, you can do so here. Happy New Year to you, Happy Birthday to MLB Network and as always….Go Cubs Go!

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One thought on “Happy Birthday MLB Network”

I actually like the MLB Network. I don’t watch a lot of TV, but when I do I’m usually flipping to Ch.94 to see what’s going on. One thing I’d like to see more of is Minor League games. All of the MiLB All-Star games are on different dates, so they could at least show those. And the playoffs maybe. Another thing they could do is show some baseball movies. There are a lot of them out there, and they could dedicate one day a week or month to run one.
Mikehttp://burrilltalksbaseball.mlblogs.com

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